Kristen Hollopeter's Monomyth Project

Kristen Hollopeter's Monomyth Project - Page Text Content

FC: The Time Traveler's Wife and the Monomyth by Kristen Hollopeter

1: The Call to Adventure : | The Call to Adventure happens when Claire and Henry meet for the first time in the library. Henry is not aware that he has visited her by time traveling since she was six: "I can barely refrain from throwing my arms around him. It is obvious he has never seen me before in his life" (Niffenegger 4). Claire has been in love with Henry,a man who has been time traveling all his life, since he started visiting her in the meadow.

2: The Library | Meadow | The meadow

3: Refusal of the Call | "Am I married?" Claire inquires. I met her eyes "Your pushing your luck today."(Niffenegger 67). Claire, age 12, had been asking Henry, age 36, for awhile now about her future and what it holds for her. Henry refuses to tell Claire about the future since she is so young and would not be able to comprehend what lies ahead of her.

4: Supernatural Aid | Henry was the supernatural aid for Claire. "Today isn't a Henry day; the next one is twenty- two days away" (Niffenegger 71). No matter how long she waited for Henry, whenever he has gotten back from time traveling he was her comfort.

5: Crossing the First Threshold | Crossing the threshold meant that when Claire turned eighteen, she was giving her heart to Henry. She knew that she wanted to spend the rest of her life with him; and that she was going to tell him how she felt. "What exactly did we decide , the last time you saw me" (Niffenegger 420)? This is also the day where she will end up losing her virginity to him.

6: Belly of theWhale | The belly of the whale was when Henry traveled through time. He was alone and had to adjust himself to the date, time, and even climate of where he was. "It's cold. It's very, very cold and I am lying on the ground in snow. Where am I"(Niffenegger 470)

7: Road of Trials | Henry's time travels were now always fond memories. Traveling had its advantages and disadvantages. When he traveled he wasn't allowed to take anything with him. This meant he couldn't even take clothes. He was often having to improvise with whatever was around him. "I'm hiding because I lost my clothes and I'm embarrassed" (Niffenegger 37). Most of the time he had to hide himself since he traveled nude. He had to teach himself at a young age to steal to get money for clothing, and food to last him until he time traveled back.

8: Meeting with Goddess | "And this astoundingly beautiful amber-haired tall slim girl turns around and looks at me" (Niffenegger 5). Claire was the goddess. She was beautiful and different than any other girl Henry had ever been with. She made Henry want to settle down, and straighten up his life.

9: Temptation away from path | Claire is also to be found as the temptation in this novel. "Later, in bed with Ingrid, I wonder who Claire is" (Niffenegger 439). She was a temptation because whenever he got a phone call from a girl named Claire he began to wonder who might Claire be. Claire was a distraction from the road he was on. She made him want to give up everything just to be with her.

10: Atonement with the Father | Dr. Kendrick was Claire and Henry's supernatural aid. He was a genetic doctor that had found a way for the couple to have a baby. Claire and Henry had started losing all hope in having a kid of there own. The way Dr. Kendrick found was through gene therapy. Claire tells Henry " But it worked! Kendrick made it work" (Niffenegger 361)!

11: Apotheosis | Henrys realization that he is about to die. He is not thinking about himself the way he used to. He's more concerned about Claire and the way she's gonna take his death, and how Alba, his daughter, will grow up to be. A few nights before he died he wrote Claire a note saying he knew the end was near and that he loved her. He said in this letter that after he passed he wanted her to move on and stop waiting and to be happy in life.

12: Refual of Return | Henry didn't like to time travel. When he time traveled he had to leave being in the present with Claire. "And so, we are married"(Niffenegger 280). Claire says in satisfaction. For she no longer has to feel as though Henry isn't hers.

13: Master of Two Worlds | Henry becomes "master of two worlds" when he dies and still has the ability to time travel. He can only time travel to the places where he has been now. Most of the time he time travels with his daughter, Alba. Alba is what the world calls a CDP(time traveler). "I'm sitting on Lighthouse Beach with Alba. She's ten. I'm forty-two. Both of us are time traveling" (Niffenegger 529).